Black-winged stilt
Himantopus himantopus
birdyday · Batumi, Adjara Georgia field photo
Key facts in one look
- Length
- About 37–38 cm
- Group
- Bird
- Family
- Recurvirostridae
- Status in Georgia
- Breeding bird and migrant
- Habitat
- Shallow marshes, lake shores
- IUCN
- LC (2025)
The black-winged stilt's legs make up almost half of its length: pink-red, very long and thin. It is a black-and-white bird with a thin, straight black bill, about 37–38 cm long. In Georgia it is both a breeding bird and a migrant: it passes through in spring and autumn, and some birds stay to breed. It occurs in Kvemo Kartli, Kakheti, Shida Kartli, Adjara and Abkhazia. In May 2024 it was nesting in small colonies around Kumisi Lake in Kvemo Kartli. Globally it is of Least Concern (LC) in the 2025 assessment, and it is not on Georgia's 2014 Red List.
Identification
Black-winged stilt: how to identify it
The black-winged stilt is recognisable from afar by its very long, pink-red legs, which make up almost half of its length. Its back and wings are black, its underparts pure white and its bill thin, straight and black. With these marks it is hard to confuse with any other bird.
An adult is about 37–38 cm long, with a wingspan of about 75 cm and a weight of about 180 g. The legs make up almost half of that length.
In flight the long legs trail far beyond the tail. The black underwing contrasts sharply with the pure white belly. This silhouette is easy to see from a distance.
The male has a glossy black back, the female a browner one. The female's crown and nape are usually unmarked. A young bird looks like an adult, but its plumage has a brownish tinge.
The call is a harsh, shrill 'kik-kik-kik', and when flushed it gives a nasal 'queet'.
Colour
Black back and wings, pure white underparts, pink-red legs and a black bill. Females and young birds have a browner back.
Swatches are illustrative. Do not identify a species by colour alone.
Often confused with
The black-winged stilt is a waterbird of shallow marshes and the shallow edges of lakes, where it wades on its long legs. It nests near water on firm ground or a hummock, sometimes on floating vegetation. It is found from sea level into the mountains: up to 4,300 m worldwide. In Georgia, in May 2024, it was nesting in small colonies around Kumisi Lake in Kvemo Kartli. That is a single observation and does not cover all of its breeding sites in the country.
The black-winged stilt map combines public iNaturalist observations. Regions are taken from the records-by-region table, and the status column separates regions with enough records from regions with too few records. Most records fall between March and September, with only a few in winter. Record counts reflect observation effort rather than population density.
Data: Reptiles.ge + iNaturalist · Methodology
- Field observation
- Several records in one spot
- Photo record
- Region with records
The black-winged stilt feeds mainly on aquatic insects and their larvae. It also eats molluscs, crustaceans, spiders, tadpoles, small fish and fish eggs. It picks food from the ground, from plants or from the water surface with its thin, straight bill.
The black-winged stilt breeds alone or in loose colonies, usually of 2–50 pairs and occasionally several hundred. The nest is a small scrape in the ground, often on a hummock near water. A nest seen at Kumisi Lake in 2024 held grass fibres and small sticks, and the eggs were cream with brown-grey mottling. Northern populations move south between August and November and return in March and April. In Georgia too it passes through in spring and autumn and is almost absent in winter. The call is a harsh, shrill 'kik-kik-kik'; when flushed it gives a nasal 'queet'.
Globally the black-winged stilt is of Least Concern (LC) in the 2025 assessment, and its numbers are suspected to be stable. A 2021 estimate puts the world population at 486,000–2,690,000 mature birds, although that figure covers the species in a broad sense, including the American and Australasian stilts. Europe holds 50,700–135,000 breeding pairs, and numbers there are suspected to be increasing. The black-winged stilt is not on Georgia's 2014 Red List. It needs shallow marshes to breed, so its future depends on keeping such marshes.
birdyday · Giorgi Natsvlishvili · Nikita Tiunov · Anton Chechulin · Paul Kingsnorth · abcdefgewing · granzh26 · Daria Semenova
Related guides
Continue with related pages
Yes. In Georgia it is both a breeding bird and a migrant: it passes through in spring and autumn, and some birds stay to breed. It occurs in Kvemo Kartli, Kakheti, Shida Kartli, Adjara and Abkhazia. In May 2024 it was nesting in small colonies around Kumisi Lake in Kvemo Kartli. It is almost absent in winter.
From spring to autumn. In Georgia it passes through mainly in spring and autumn; northern populations return in March and April and leave between August and November. The breeding season falls in spring and summer. In winter you will rarely see one.
By its very long, pink-red legs, which make up almost half of its length. Its back and wings are black, its belly white and its bill thin, straight and black. In flight the legs trail far beyond the tail. Together these marks rule out any other bird.
Mainly aquatic insects and their larvae. It also eats molluscs, crustaceans, spiders, tadpoles, small fish and fish eggs. It picks food from the water surface, the ground or plants.
On the ground at the water's edge: the nest is a small scrape, often on a hummock, sometimes on floating vegetation. It often breeds in loose colonies, usually of 2–50 pairs. At Kumisi Lake the nests held grass fibres and small sticks. Walk carefully along lake shores in the breeding season.
It is not on Georgia's 2014 Red List. Globally it is of Least Concern (LC) in the 2025 assessment, and its numbers are suspected to be stable. Shallow marshes are what it needs to breed, so keeping them matters for this bird too.
References
What this profile is based on
Species profiles are compiled from peer-reviewed literature and established biodiversity databases, and are reviewed as new taxonomic and conservation data become available.
Prepared by the Reptiles.ge editorial team from the sources listed here.
